R E N A T O  L U C A S, cello (P H I L I P P I N E S)

“High Art” seems worn but it does accurately describe RENATO LUCAS, who was destined for a career as a man of music. Mr. Lucas is an alumnus of the University of the Philippines. Among his mentors were Modesto Maiquez and Herminia Atienza-Ilano. At a young age, he joined the Pasaknungan Chamber Orchestra and the Philippine Youth Orchestra, and was later invited by Luis Valencia to join the CCP Philharmonic Orchestra. In 1978, he won first prize in the National Music Competition for Young Artists. The League of Filipino Composers likewise recognized him when he won the Chamber Music Composition Contest the same year. While a student at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music under Bonnie Hampton --- a protégée of the legendary Pablo Casals, Mr. Lucas became principal cellist of the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra, under Edo de Waart. He had the privilege of participating in masterclasses by legendary cellists like Paul Tortelier, Zara Nelsova, Lorne Munroe, Anner Bylsma, Mstislav Rostropovich, and members of the Beaux Arts Trio. He also won auditions to participate in the Spoleto Festival held in Charleston, USA and Spoleto, Italy. Upon his return, Oscar Yatco invited him to be the Principal Cellist of the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra. He represented the Philippines in various Southeast Asian Art Festivals. In 1978, Mr. Lucas embarked on a concert tour of China with the PPO String Quartet and the following year, he was sent to Washington D.C. as the Philippine representative to the 1st World Cello Congress. His recitals at the Philippine Embassy and at the IMF Visitor’s Center merited him the “Critic’s Pick” from the Washington Post. He studied further in Germany with the renowned cellist Karine Georgian, and concertized with the Detmolder Kammerorchester, perform for various chamber music concerts, as well as pursue his conducting studies. He was later sent by the British Council as a Fellow in Cello and Conducting to the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester. Mr. Lucas returned to his post as principal cellist of the PPO, appearing as its soloist and conductor numerously, and has been invited to perform as soloist with many ensembles including the Manila Chamber Orchestra, Camerata Manila, the Metro Manila Symphony Orchestra, and the UST Symphony Orchestra. He also played in various performances for the CCP’s Filipino Artist Series, the Pundaquit Arts Festival, and the Las Piñas Bamboo Organ Festival. His performance of Bruch’s Kol Nidre in Camerata dell’Arte Foundation’s Coming Home, Opus 1 drew rave reviews and was released on CD. He was also one of the privileged few to have been invited by Maestro Piero Gamba in the United Nations’ Millenium Concert of the Nations at the Lincoln Center in New York. He currently teaches Cello, Chamber Music, Music History and Music Literature at the UST Conservatory of Music where he also serves as Conductor of the UST Symphony Orchestra. He holds an M. A. in History from the UST Graduate School for his thesis on the History of the Symphony Orchestra in the Philippines.